IPL2024: As Rishabh Pant Makes His Cricket Comeback, Fans Are Ecstatic and Joyous

Fans will be ecstatic and jubilant when Rishabh Pant makes his eagerly anticipated comeback to competitive cricket at the new Mullanpur stadium on Saturday afternoon, after 455 days away. They will be thrilled to see one of the sport’s most upbeat characters make a triumphant return.

Pant’s return to competitive cricket is a significant event because it is not often that athletes make a full recovery from such a serious and nearly fatal accident. This is especially true after Pant suffered multiple injuries, including the reconstruction of his right knee ligaments.

Pant still has a bright grin and a happy disposition after the accident. But now he values living in the now, appreciating the little things in life, and looking forward to the opportunity to play his favorite sport with newfound excitement. Three ardent Rishabh Pant supporters spoke exclusively with IANS about him adopting a new approach in his cricket career.

The heart warrior Ayan Mustafi received a birthday wish from Pant.
When asked what he thinks about Pant’s homecoming, seven-year-old Ayan says, “I am feeling happy and very excited about his return.” Ayan is more excited about his favorite player’s comeback to the field than he is about the DC jersey that will be ordered with Rishabh’s name and number. He plans to wear the jersey to school for early-morning cricket practice.

He was naturally left-handed and plump, and he had a deep affection for Pant at the age of three, having seen the 2021 Gabba Test. Even though he was too little to comprehend, I would tell him, “Rishabh Pant maar raha hai” (Rishabh Pant is striking limits), as we were watching the game together.

It was one of those occasions when Ayan began to applaud and show more interest in the manner in which I batted. According to his father, Suvajit Mustafi, “Pant got him interested in cricket and he just wanted to be like him.”

Suvajit remembers that on December 30, 2022, when that terrible catastrophe involving Pant occurred, Ayan was quite distressed. He was analyzing everything when he somehow got a glimpse of the photographs. He didn’t respond. He started to wonder whether he would ever be able to walk or play again since it was clearly having an impact on him. He continued to pray to God after I instructed him to.

Ayan turned six on February 27, 2023, and Suvajit decided to share his batting video on X in an attempt to make a happy post. He also asked Rishabh to give Ayan a birthday wish. To the amazement of the father-son team, Rishabh did wish Ayan a happy birthday, writing, “Happy birthday, Ayan. (Two cake and happy emojis) Have a wonderful new year.

“When Rishabh responded to him via X, others began to comment on those postings, and I continued to get alerts about that post, but I had no idea it would go viral. He responded, “Okay, it’s my birthday, I got a wish from him,” after realizing how much Rishabh’s response meant to him. He was also surrounded by pals who began to remark, “You got a birthday wish from Rishabh Pant!”

“A buddy of mine informed me that several media outlets had chosen to include the message. Ayan also began to realize that it was a huge event to get a birthday greeting from Rishabh. I was later questioned by Ayan about whether Rishabh had written it and if he had given me a call. I promised him, ‘You will get to speak to him when you grow up and become a cricketer like him,'” Suvajit said.

During his brief life, Ayan has had several medical procedures. Unlike most individuals, who have three heart valves, he is a heart patient with just two. He has already had three operations, and eventually he will need a fourth to replace the lost third valve.

“I was operated on too, and I’ve started playing the sport,” would be Ryan’s response. Thus, once he heals, Rishabh Bhaiya will participate in the sport as well. He was delighted to see Rishabh at the stadium for the DC-GT game in Delhi and will inquire about his availability for every DC game in the 2023 Indian Premier League. Suvajit said, “His fascination with Rishabh is so great that Spiderman is his favorite cartoon.

When Suvajit showed Ayan footage of Rishabh walking easily and doing other recovery-related tasks, Ayan would monitor his progress. ‘Is Rishabh bhaiya practicing now?’ Ayan would ask Suvajit out of the blue before going to sleep at night. Is he hitting right now?

“Ayan now feels more connected to Rishabh emotionally. Our kid may now pursue his ambition of becoming a cricket player thanks to Rishabh, and even though we are unsure whether he will, this is all very meaningful.

“Every physician at the Apollo Hospital in Mumbai, where Ayan had his interventions performed, referred to him as the “Miracle Baby.” Similarly, in the bcci.tv video, Dr. Dinshaw Pardiwala referred to Rishabh as the “Miracle Man.” “I was shocked and thought, ‘This is another significant coincidence,'” continues Suvajit.

Suvajit convinced Ayan that he would participate in the event after Sourav Ganguly said last year that Rishabh may play in the IPL in 2024. “Ayan watched every WPL game that DC played this year and even inquired, ‘Is Rishabh bhaiya coming to watch these games in stadium?'”

“When he plays with his friends, he claims to be Rishabh Pant. This year, I showed Ayan some bats, and he chose an SG bat.” I tried to get him to look at other bats because of their size, but he insisted on taking the SG bat since Rishabh Pant also uses it.

For the time being, the father and son are thrilled to see Rishabh return to cricket. “I’m crossing my fingers that he plays again soon. Nothing more than that, in my opinion, if he returns to the Test squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and gets used to the cricketing rhythm and load surrounding it.

From sharing a camp with Pant to eagerly awaiting his return, LUVPREET SINGH
Before the domestic season started in 2015, Rishabh, who was playing for the Delhi U23 squad, was seen by Luvpreet, who was with the Delhi U16 team, during a camp at Feroz Shah Kotla. “By that time, everyone in the Delhi cricket scene was aware of him, saying things like, ‘See, he’s that attacking left-handed batter from Sonnet Club.'”

“To be completely honest, there are players in camps who get nervous over selection, and I was one of them when I was younger. Then there are laid-back individuals like Rishabh, who just stroll up to the nets and knock the bowlers off the field with the first ball.

He addressed the lads from Sonnet Club who were in my cohort. When Ayush Badoni was with me, I recall that he was friendly with Rishabh. Luvpreet remembers his clear recollection of Pant, saying, “I talked to him about Rishabh and he said, ‘He’s a great guy to talk to,’ but I didn’t have the courage to talk to him.”

Luvpreet, who is now employed as an engineer, was unable to continue playing cricket while Pant advanced through the ranks, from the U19 World Cup to the Gabba, where he won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2021. Nevertheless, she developed a passionate admiration for the wicketkeeper-batter. At first, Luvpreet believed the accident to be false news, but she was very disturbed to learn that it was real.

“I basically tracked everything about it for the following four days, until he was operated on at Kokilaben Hospital in Mumbai after being transported there from Dehradun. I kept a careful eye on his recuperation progress by following both his and the Indian cricket team’s Instagram feeds.

He said, “I watched the videos where he posted that he was walking without crutches and at full speed, and the one where he batted for a while during a game in a function (of JSW on Independence Day) and then kept practicing and ran at full speed. I felt very heartened to see about his recovery progress.”

Luvpreet was overjoyed and relieved to learn on March 12 that Pant had been permitted to return as a wicketkeeper-batter, according to the official BCCI report. It was strange to read about him allegedly being forced to play as an impact player or a specialty hitter. However, I have no doubt that when he returns to the pitch as a keeper-batter, he will be much more psychologically tougher and stronger. He will also be hungry to play.

To tell the truth, I had no idea he would get well so quickly. I had a short athletic career, so I am aware of the psychological and physical effects of injuries. I watched the Miracle Man films as well, and I was astounded to learn about the specifics of his wounds, from which he healed fully. “It’s amazing how much of a recovery he’s made to get back into the game,” he continues.

Luvpreet says that Pant’s recovery seems like a very personal victory, even if it is hours before he will return to competitive cricket. “He batted right at the nets where I practiced bowling,” I saw. It feels amazing and means a lot to see him on the cusp of making a comeback to the game after following every step of his journey and recuperation.

“Giving him time to reach his peak performance will make him an even more proficient player than he was previously.” I’m intending to get tickets as soon as they go on sale for DC’s IPL 2024 games in Delhi so that I may see Rishabh in action.

THE ENTHUSIAST WHO SEEK PANT GLIMPSES OF SEHWAG, DHONI, AND RAINA
When Pant struck his explosive 18-ball fifty against Nepal at the 2016 U19 World Cup, Ankit had no idea who this daring batsman was. “I thought to myself, ‘Who’s this guy playing like Virender Sehwag?'” after watching that particular innings. However, he went on to score runs in a pile.

“I thought, ‘nah, he’s the player to follow from the next generation of cricketers,’ when he reached his peak in the 2018 Indian Premier League and won Emerging Player of that season.'” I saw no turning back from becoming Rishabh Pant’s fan because I saw him as a combination of my three favorite players—Sehwag, Suresh Raina, and MS Dhoni—both on and off the field,” remembers Ankit.

Ankit noticed a post on X the morning of the accident that said, “Get well soon, Rishabh Pant.” Ankit assumed this was a message about him being rested from the January white-ball series against Sri Lanka because of a niggle, for which he was scheduled to visit the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for the healing process.

“I assumed it had to do with the fact that he needed to recover quickly so he could compete in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in February or March. However, after scrolling through the page further, I was surprised to discover those automobile photographs, and for the next two to three days, I was in a completely bad mood. “He should be fine at all costs and the rest will be seen later” was all that concerned me.

When Ankit saw a video of Pant hitting at a JSW Independence Day celebration on August 15, 2023, it got him thinking about getting back into the game. I started to get feelings that Rishabh Pant from before was returning. I also kept up with his social media postings to monitor his recuperation since a lot of people were speculating about how long he had been laid off—anywhere from six months to two years.

Also, I had a feeling that he might return to the tournament at some point when I saw him sitting at the auction table in December of last year. There is a lot of optimism because of his strong will and capacity to overcome any obstacle throughout his recuperation.

Ankit’s feelings of joy and exhilaration upon seeing Pant return are similar to what he had in 2012 after Yuvraj Singh’s incredible recovery from cancer.

“I was walking around that day saying, ‘Yuvraj is back, Yuvraj is back.'” I am thus feeling a same level of excitement about Pant’s comeback and I hope he takes his time increasing his playing effort till the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is awarded.